Books published by publisher Cool Springs Press

BLACK+DECKER's latest edition of the best-selling home-improvement book in North America for more than a decade is completely updated to conform to 2017–2020 national electrical codes. For more than ten years, BLACK+DECKER The Complete Guide to Wiring has been the best-selling home wiring manual in North America. Now with more than two million copies in print, this is the home reference book more DIYers choose than any other for many reasons. As the most current wiring book on the market, you can be confident that your projects will meet national writing codes. You’ll also spend more time on your project and less time scratching your head thanks to more than 800 clear color photos and over 40 diagrams that show you exactly what you need to know about home electrical service; all the most common circuits, all the most-needed techniques, all the most essential tools and materials. The information in this book has been created and reviewed by professional electricians under the watchful eye of the experts at BLACK+DECKER. You can find plenty of articles and videos about wiring online or in other publications, but only The Complete Guide to Wiring has passed the rigorous test to make it part of The Best DIY Series from the Brand You Trust.

In All New Square Food Gardening, 3rd Edition, the best-selling gardening book in North America is re-launched and updated for the next generation of gardeners and beyond. Since Square Foot Gardening was first introduced in 1981, the revolutionary new way to garden developed by Mel Bartholomew has helped millions of home gardeners grow more fresh produce in less space and with less work. Now, based largely on the input and experience of these millions, the system has been even further refined and improved to fully meet today's changing resources, needs, and challenges. With over 150 new photos and illustrations, this new edition makes it easier than ever to achieve nearly-foolproof results in virtually any situation: 100% of the produce; 20% of the water; 5% of the work. Perfect for experienced Square-Foot-Gardeners or beginners, the original method created by Mel has not changed in any significant way with this new 3rd edition of All New Square Foot Gardening. It remains: build a box; fill it with Mel's Mix; add a grid. But along with the classic steps, you will find some interesting and compelling new information, such as:Adding trellises and archwaysSubstituting with new materialsAdding automatic watering systems"Thinking Outside the Box" with creative configurations and shapesSquare Foot Gardening in dense urban areas with little or no yardSquare Foot Gardening with kidsCrop protectionDon't wait another season to try Mel's brilliant approach to gardening! We're sure it will work for you and you won't look back.

Square Foot Gardening is the most practical, foolproof way to grow a home garden, whether you're growing an urban garden, or have an entire backyard. That explains why author and gardening innovator Mel Bartholomew has sold more than two million books teaching how to become a successful DIY square foot gardener. Mel developed his techniques back in the early 1980s and has been teaching them around the world ever since. In the process, he has made improvements and refinements, and has continually adapted his practices to keep pace with modern times. In this second edition, Bartholomew furthers his discussion on one of the most popular gardening trends today: vertical gardening. He also explains how you can make gardening fun for kids by teaching them the square foot method. Rich with new, full-color images and updated tips for selecting materials, this highly produced edition will bring you up to speed with Mel's industry-changing insights.

What's the best way to nurture your green thumb when you don't have a yard or space? Houseplants! This is your guide to raising the best, healthiest, and happiest potted plants nature has ever seen. When you want to raise plants but just don’t have the space, then it’s time to turn to houseplants! Houseplants is the definitive guide to the millions of varieties that houseplants come in, and the different levels of maintenance, care and know-how they all require. Now is your chance to dive into this pleasant, no-yard-required hobby without the questions of which potting mix to try, what the right level of light you’ll need, or how to shift your plants as seasons change. Houseplants profiles more than 150 different plants, and gives you the best techniques to raise them to be happy, green, and healthy. And as you watch them grow, you can stimulate your inner botanist with the included information on each plant’s Latin family, varieties, bloom period, mature height, and other scientific specs.

Fight garden pests and increase your yields the natural way with this tried and true technique! Planting vegetables and flowers together is one of the oldest ways to create a healthy, bountiful garden; but there's more to the method than you might think. Vegetables Love Flowers walks you through the ins and outs of companion planting, from how it works to which plants go together and how to grow the best garden for your climate. Alongside gorgeous garden photography, you'll also learn about:Seed-starting, growing, and harvestingHow to make garden flower bouquets, with "recipes" for various arrangementsHow to attract beneficial creatures to pollinate your garden and prey on its pestsPesticide-free pest-control measuresComposting heaps and binsWith the right information and some careful planning, you can help your plants thrive—and beautify your garden in the process.

In Field Guide to Urban Gardening, author Kevin Espiritu of Epic Gardening shares the basics of growing plants, offers tips on how to choose the right urban gardening method, and troubleshoots the most common problems you’ll encounter. If you think it’s impossible to grow your own food because you don’t have a large yard or you live in the city…think again. There is a plethora of urban gardening options to create beautiful, productive edible gardens no matter where you live. The key to succeeding as an urban gardener is to choose the method(s) that make sense for your unique living situation and then give your plants what they need to thrive. Kevin helps you do just that. But he doesn’t stop there. He also provides in-depth garden plans, from upcycled DIY projects and intensive hydroponic systems to beautiful and functional raised beds. Urban gardening is a real, growing, and important movement in today’s world. This fact-packed book is your roadmap to get growing today. Urban gardening techniques featured include:Container GardeningRaised BedsIndoor EdiblesBalconies and RooftopsHydroponics

Produced in association with the National Audubon Society, Audubon Birding Adventures for Kids introduces you and your children to the love of all things birding. Whether exploring the forest, the backyard, or the city, you and your kids will learn about the habits of North America’s most popular songbirds, how to create safe and welcoming environments for them, how to observe them, and how to construct easy and safe species-appropriate birdhouses and feeders for common birds. The bird ID section includes descriptions of species and range maps. Kids will also find 20 exciting activities and games (10 indoor, 10 outdoor), including how to form birding groups, scavenger hunts, and a birdsong listening game. In addition to practical, field-tested knowledge and fascinating information about the species covered, this guide is packed with beautiful color photography. Since all the information presented is the product of years of National Audubon Society expertise, both you and your kids can be sure you're getting the best advice before setting about your birding adventures.

Elevate your backyard veggie patch into a work of sophisticated and stylish art. Kitchen Garden Revival guides you through every aspect of kitchen gardening, from design to harvesting—with expert advice from author Nicole Johnsey Burke, founder of Rooted Garden, one of the leading US culinary landscape companies, and Gardenary, an online kitchen gardening education and resource company. Participating in the grow-your-own movement is important to both reduce your food miles and control what makes it onto your family’s table. If you’ve hesitated to take part because installing and caring for a traditional vegetable garden doesn’t seem to suit your life or your sense of style, Kitchen Garden Revival is here to show you there’s a better, more beautiful way to grow food. Instead of row after row of cabbage and pepper plants plunked into a patch of dirt in the middle of the yard, kitchen gardens are attractive, highly tailored food gardens consisting of easy-to-maintain raised planting beds laid out in an organized geometric pattern. Offering both four seasons of ornamental interest and plenty of fresh, homegrown fruits, vegetables, and herbs, kitchen gardens are the way to grow your own food in a fashionable, modern, and practical way. Kitchen gardens were once popular features of the European and early American landscape, but they fell out of favor when our agrarian roots were displaced by industrialization. With this accessible and inspirational guide, Nicole aims to return the kitchen garden to its rightful place just outside of every backdoor.Learn the art of kitchen gardening as you discover: What characteristics all kitchen gardens have in commonHow to design and install gorgeous kitchen garden beds using metal, wood, or stoneWhy raised beds mean reduced maintenanceWhat crops are best for your kitchen garden A planting, tending, and harvesting plan developed by a proSeason-by-season growing guides It's time to join the Kitchen Garden Revival and start growing your own delicious, organic food.

Whether you garden on a small city lot or on a large country property, Composting for a New Generation covers everything you need to know to make great compost quickly. Composting is not just about reducing food and yard waste; it's also about improving the health of your soiland the productivity of your garden. Compost is full of nutrients and beneficial microbes that help plants thrive, but store-bought compost is expensive and often comes packaged in non-recyclable plastic bags. Instead of running to the store to purchase compost, learn how to make your own rich, earthy compost and watch your garden thrive. Composting for a New Generation explains the complex science behind effective and efficient composting in layman's terms and includes detailed information on tried-and-true composting methods right along with new, innovative techniques. From traditional bin composting (including step-by-step instructions for building your own bin) and vermicomposting, to keyhole gardens and trench composting, you'll close the cover with all the knowledge needed to be an expert composter today. Plus, you'll learn how to use all that "home cooked" compost successfully. Composting for a New Generation is the most complete book to date on organic composting.

No matter where you live, you’ll find great fishing for some type of fish. It may be catfish or sunfish in a local farm pond, carp in a nearby river, or crappies and bass in the lake across town. The beginning of this book shows you where different fish types (called species) live. As you page through this chapter, check out the small colored maps to see which species live in your state. And look closely at the drawings of the fish so you can tell what you have landed. So what species do you think will be your favorite to catch? This book covers:How do I make a fish bite?Teaching kids proven methods of locating, catching, and handling a variety of species.Is it a keeper?What does my fish weigh?

Add an exquisite flourish of design to your beloved green space or garden by adding tiny fairy homes inter-woven with nature. Fairy Houses gives you the instruction and inspiration you need to start! Have you ever seen a real fairy house? Not the ceramic ones at cavernous home improvement stores, but a real fairy house made from natural elements? Well, now you can build your own miniature magical abode - the perfect addition to your garden.Step-by-step instructions for constructing exquisite fairy houses are revealed in Fairy Houses, explained by master fairy house architect Sally Smith. Smith has been creating one-of-a-kind DIY fairy houses out of natural artifacts for years, now she passes her miniature construction knowledge to you. Imagine, a fairy garden with homes that have butterfly wings as stained-glass windows, twigs for window frames, birch bark for walls, dried mushrooms for shingles; it's all possible with a little instruction and inspiration from Fairy Houses. Begin by flipping through an inspiration gallery, find which elements appeal to you, and how they fit together. From there, you’ll learn about building materials (found and natural), on-site fairy house construction, and how to light a fairy house.

Take your straw bale gardening to the next level—in more places, with new products, and even sometimes skipping the straw entirely—with Straw Bale Gardens Complete.The reception and enthusiasm for straw bale gardening, introduced in 2013, has proved revolutionary in vegetable growing. Why? Because the bold promises in the book are kept: grow vegetables anywhere, earlier in the year, with no weeding. Gardeners everywhere are excited. Straw bale gardening works! In just the short amount of time that has passed, the gardening world and Joel Karsten himself have learned even more about how to apply this method in just about any environment: on a city balcony, in a rocky outpost, in a desert, and even in the tundra of Alaska.Straw Bale Gardens Complete contains all of the original information that has set the gardening world on fire. But it also goes much deeper, with nearly 50 pages of all-new advice and photos on subjects such as growing in a tight urban setting, making your straw bale garden completely organic, and using new fertilizers and conditioning products. There is even information on using straw bale techniques to grow veggies in other organic media for anyone who has a hard time finding straw.Fans of Straw Bale Gardens will not want to miss adding Straw Bale Gardens Complete to their gardening library. There is, literally, nothing else like it!